The Palestine Monetary Authority issued instructions to all banks to postpone collecting loan instalments from individual borrowers in the Gaza Strip until the end of 2025, extending earlier measures that suspended repayments during the ongoing war. The PMA said loan collections have been suspended for around 20 months since the outbreak of the conflict, citing borrowers’ need for liquidity amid rising prices and sharply higher inflation and unemployment. It put the Gaza Strip loan portfolio at around USD 1 billion and said the prolonged suspension has resulted in substantial losses for banks alongside other war-related operational losses, while Governor Yahya Shunnar noted efforts to secure external funding to partially compensate banks are ongoing. The new instructions also set a gradual resumption of loan repayments starting in January 2026, beginning with deductions equivalent to 25% of the monthly instalment amount and, by the second half of 2026, capping deductions at no more than 50% of the borrower’s salary.

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